EMBASSY

No fewer than fifteen local workers have been disengaged by the Nigerian Embassy in Washington, DC.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Abuja, said it however approved the disengagement of the workers due to some ongoing rationalization of workers at the embassy.

Reports say the ministry had also approved the payment of gratuities to the workers, some of whom had worked with the embassy for more than thirty years.

Meanwhile, some of the affected workers had alleged that the decision to lay them off was arbitrary adding that the embassy had no plans to pay their gratuity and other severance benefits accusing the Mission of retaining the non-Nigerian employees at the expense of Nigerian.

According to reports, the embassy denied that there was no prior notice to the disengaged workers, saying they actually agreed to the arrangement since February 2017 while assuring workers that the processes for the payment of their entitlements had reached an advanced stage.